Brake Fluid Flush.

[wfopete]

How many of you do this regularly to your vehicles? On my dirt bike (racer) I replace the brake fluid a couple times a year. I thought; dang my 3500 Chevy van might like that too as the fluid is hygroscopic, probably dirty as heck and just plain OLD.

 

[GrayFlattop]

I used to do it a couple of times a year when I was tracking the car. Now I'll do it when I do a full brake job. It's pretty easy with a Vacula or a power bleeder.

 

[bwringer]

Every year on bikes, every two years on cars.

One of my bikes has a hydraulic clutch. Since you're using the full stroke each time, the fluid turns black a lot quicker. It's visible and it bugs me, so that one gets flushed more often.

Although flushing isn't always possible on cars, since around here at least the bleeder screws inevitably corrode and seize, sometimes very quickly.

I swear, could they possibly make bleeder screws any weaker and shittier?

 

[Erampu]

I've never done it on any vehicles in 50+ years of driving...

 

[wfopete]

I've never done it on any vehicles in 50+ years of driving...

That's why I asked, I have not either (other than my motorcycles). I will tell you under severe conditions (M/C) good fresh brake fluid makes a differance! I wondered if the same held true for my 4 wheeled daily driver. After knowing what my M/Cs old fuild looks like coming out, I feel sorry for my van.

 

[matt_i]

I was pretty impressed, I did a 2000 Grand Prix about 10 years into its life and the original fluid looked very good, like it could have gone considerably longer. I got into it due to a rusted-thru line and decided to flush the entire system at once.

Seems like the old truck designs where its basically a cast iron bathtub with a plastic cover over top of it leak some humidity into it and contaminate the fluid faster.

 

[Hubmonkey]

I bought a Motive Power Bleeder kit that I have used in the past. Use it when I changed the brake pads.

 

[3Series]

I used to do it a couple of times a year when I was tracking the car. Now I'll do it when I do a full brake job. It's pretty easy with a Vacula or a power bleeder.

Track car, flush and replace with SRF once a year. Bleed in between. I use a Power Bleeder.

Daily driver, haven't flushed it, but the car is telling me to, 2 yrs old. I'll flush it with reg fluid when I get around to it. Probably in the spring when I do the annual oil change and it warms up again. I think brake fluid intervals are overrated anyway.

Other vehicle the dealer takes care of the service, I just pay the bill.

 

[Johnny Generic]

Annual oil change????????????????

 

[rlitman]

I just re-did the brakes on my 2013 Accord (how on earth I got 78k miles on the factory pads on all four corners still bewilders me, but that's a different story).

At each corner, before pushing the pistons back, I used my vacuum bleeder to pull fluid until it ran clear. This way, I KNOW that when I push the pistons back, I'm not forcing any **** into the system that may hurt my ABS. And that's the biggest reason for flushing more frequently than in the past. ABS/ASR/TCS/ESP systems are sensitive to debris in the fluid, and are VERY expensive to repair. A quart of insurance every few years is a cheap price to pay.

As for how I flush, that depends on the job. I've found that vacuum flushing, particularly in the rear, isn't aggressive enough to force all the bubbles out of a system where new components were installed. But vacuum flushing is super convenient when you're just changing fluid.

 

[yeldogt]

My euro cars with 4e -- I'm typically good with keeping up the 2 year replacement .. typically something needs to be done.

Since I have been moving the fleet cars to Toyota Prius -- The pads last so long I'm actually bumping up against the 5 year mark for the fluid replacement and the pads are still OK...

 

[vavet]

I used to aim for every 2 years, but I haven't done it well.
I just changed the brake fluid in my wife's 2011 Sonata for the first time 2 weekends ago. We bought that car new so I know it was never done before.
I just did my 2012 Mazda5 last weekend for the first time since I've had it - about 2.5 years.
Brake fluid is cheap. Even the vacuum brake bleeders are cheap - $30 at HF, less than that on amazon. They draw a LOT of air. My C-man 25 gallon compressor can't keep up. I close the bleed screw and let the compressor recover after about 5 minutes when it hits 80 PSI. Don't want to overheat the compressor from continuous running.

 

[tym]

I had a shop bleed each caliper until the fluid ran clear when they were doing an alignment after 3 years on the factory fill. I also open the bleeder when retracting the pistons for each brake job to get the nastiest fluid out. Also manually bled the front left brake a month ago when replacing the caliper.

The stuff in the master cylinder still looks dirty even after adding a pint when the caliper was replaced. I topped off with DOT 4 LV.

 

[Bruce 993 SEA]

I have always bled the brakes per the manufacturers recommended service intervals. The older BMW and Audi were every 2 years.

I think the plastic master cylinder reservoir allows some air in with moisture. The old Chevy cast iron master with the steel cap and rubber gasket might have kept out air/moisture better.

I also use a mighty vac to remove all of the fluid from the reservoir and fill with new fluid from an unopened can of fluid. Then I pressure bleed the system to remove all of the rest of the fluid.

If you have ever chased brake issues caused by seals and abs going bad, the every 2 year bleed is a cheap way to hopefully prevent this. German cars do not have inexpensive brake parts...

I was run off of a BMW forum a few years ago when I was talking about the 2 year interval. I was basically told I was a fool and that the poster that was ridiculing me "had never changed brake fluid in his 12 years of owning BMWs". Never found out how much that cost to replace all of the components in his brake system...

 

[nh_yota]

I do it every few years or whenever I need to change a component that involves disconnecting a brake line. Honestly I don't think it makes much of a difference on daily drivers because I've never noticed any improvement after I do it.

I have a Motive power bleeder but I haven't used it in years. My Tacoma has an electronic brake booster that makes bleeding a little easier so I don't need the power bleeder.

 

[frank001]

I do it every 2-3 years on the four daily drivers. They are all fairly new. Every 2 years on the motorcycle including the clutch fluid.
I once bought a used VW van. Brakes didn't work very well. When I flushed the brake fluid it came out black with little pieces floating in it. Brake fluid doesn't last forever.

 

[jubilee]

I have never flushed brakes. Over 60 years driving. Have 1970, 1985, 1990, 1993, 1995, and 2007 model vehicles all bought new all driven fairly regularly, no problems.

 

[BillK]

I've never done it on any vehicles in 50+ years of driving...

Same here

 

[tigeraid]

Couple of times a season in the racecar. Never on any street vehicle I've ever owned.

Unless you count changing calipers often ENOUGH that it basically changes all the fluid eventually?

 

[Tonyuk]

Every 2 years, as per the current VAG service interval.

New cars are 3 years from date of manufacture, then every 2 years from the first change.

 

[PoorOwner]

suppose to be that the brake fluid absorb moisture and then the moisture will corrode the steel brake lines.. the moisture also boils and affect performance under extreme condition.

 

[ford33]

I wonder if changing the brake fluid would extend the life of the steel brake lines. Both of my vehicles have had brake lines replaced due to corrosion. Perhaps if I had changed fluid that would not have happened.

 

[rlitman]

I wonder if changing the brake fluid would extend the life of the steel brake lines. Both of my vehicles have had brake lines replaced due to corrosion. Perhaps if I had changed fluid that would not have happened.

Only if the corrosion was limited to the inside.

 

[BonzoHansen]

Every time I do pads or shoes. But i have cars that only get 5000 or less a year, so those all need to be done every few years.

 

[firebirdparts]

I've never done it, and I should at least on cars that have unmaintainable brake systems (I have 2). Personally in a whole lifetime of fooling with old cars, including back when we used to rebuild everything, I never saw a brake component really fail from internal wear or corrosion, but it couldn't hurt.

 

[Jeepster04]

Ive never flushed brake fluid just to be flushing brake fluid. Typically a caliper needs changing before its an issue.

My parents do have a 2006 Jeep that has never had the brakes replaced/calipers so Ive been pondering flushing the fluid in it. The issue is not having the correct equipment o cycle the ABS pump while youre flushing... So it leaves the old fluid in the pump till it kicks on.

 

[quicker]

I do it once a year on my bike and once every two years on my cars.

The main reason for a brake fluid flush is it's boiling temperature, which becomes lower and lower as more moisture accumulates in it. I had an old Mercedes with a fluid never flushed and it was loosing brakes on heavy braking because of that. No such problem after a flush.

If You want to do this procedure less frequently - You should use DOT 5.1 brake fluid instead of DOT 4. It has a lot higher boiling temperature and even after 2 years it is still good to go

 

[Retlaw 66]

You can buy a brake fluid tester for under $10. It measures the amount of moisture in your brake fluid.
The Motive pressure bleeder is nice. I made a clone from a 2 qt garden sprayer.

Changing the fluid is good insurance to prevent internal rust. But in the case of my 2001 Jeep, the metal brake lines rusted on the outside! Real disappointed that in this day of technological advances, auto manufacturers use junk on such a critical component.

 

[Wes Tex]

I have never flushed the brake fluid in any car/truck I have owned. I never have any problems related to brake fluid. My 2007 GMC 2500 has 185,000 miles with the original fluid and brakes. (Longest I have ever gone with any vehicle and not had to replace brake shoes or pads) I think fluid life may depend upon the climate. It is generally dry out here in West Texas.

 

[Showkey]

That's why I asked, I have not either (other than my motorcycles). I will tell you under severe conditions (M/C) good fresh brake fluid makes a differance! I wondered if the same held true for my 4 wheeled daily driver. After knowing what my M/Cs old fuild looks like coming out, I feel sorry for my van.

Good fresh brake fluid is for stopping or slowing long term internal corrosion and rubber seal deterioration ........but..........sorry, for day to day stopping ( or a panic stop) you and the vehicle can not tell old from new brake fluid.


If you have air in the brake system and do brake fluid flush ( remove the air with new fluid) then the pedal will feel much better.

 

[mobiledynamics]

I do it mine about every 2 years...whenever the wheels are off on summer/winter tire swaps

 

[nh_yota]

The way I see it, bleeding/flushing the brake system is a little risky and can cause more problems than it solves, so I keep it to a minimum. As soon as you open a fitting you risk adding air to the system and if you don't get things just right you will end up with a spongy pedal.

Granted I've been bleeding brakes for years so I'm well versed in the process but if it ain't broke I don't fix it.

 

[duwem]

Not to mention stuck bleeders that break or round off etc.

I did it on my 275K vw and the fluid looked nasty, asked a shop to do it on my truck when it was in for other stuff, don't have proof they actually did it though.

Motive brake bleeder and a friend to keep an eye on the reservoir is the way to go.

 

[rlitman]

...As soon as you open a fitting you risk adding air to the system...

That's why we take steps to minimize the risks. When I'm vacuum bleeding, I'll top off the master reservoir, connect my hose to the bleeder, pull vacuum, and only then open the bleeder.

 

[gerryw]

I never change fluid, never had a issue, come to think of it, never replaced a line.i keep all my cars to a minimum of 300,000km’s.




Gerry

 

[58Yeoman]

I did both my 63 Galaxie and 58 Chevy this year. All the wheel cylinders were corroded and the 58's MC was replaced also. I did the brakes on the 58 in the early 80's, and the Ford I've owned since 2013. The Chevy started pulling to the right, so that's when I checked them. After I did the Chevy, the Ford started pulling to the right, so it got done also.

Now...for everyone saying to not open your master cylinder to check the brake fluid, because you will introduce moist air into the system, do those motive systems have a bladder inside to keep moist air away from the brake fluid?

 

[Skyking1992]

I've been autocrossing and doing track days for almost 40 years now. We abuse our brakes terribly and people do all sorts of things to keep the brakes cool, ie duct work, special pads, special (expensive fluid), change to stainless steel caliper pistons, etc.

The one thing that I have found that helps is regular brake fluid bleeding. I bleed a cup through each wheel on a weekly basis. 99% of my braking issues are gone. Pic below is not my car, but you get the idea.

 

[johnnyradiant]

I only flush my boat trailer on any regular schedule. The rest of the vehicles just get attention when brake lines get opened up for brake work, and then it is not necessarily a complete flush. An exception to that was my /97 Suburban 2500. The brakes were marginally sized in my opinion and along the way we did do a couple flushes for the sake of flushing just to be sure that wasn't a part of their poor performance.

 

[TMcCay]

Motive power bleeder with the correct fittings for your master cylinder makes the job so much easier! Wish I had bought it sooner.

 

[Pen & Wrench]

Every 3 or 4 years on the motorcycle, hardly ever on other vehicles unless doing a complete brake job. So far so good.